The Role of Factor IXa and Factor VIII in the Activation of Factor X.

Factor IXa and factor VIII participate in the middle phase of blood coagulation. These two proteins convert factor X to factor Xa in the presence of calcium ions and phospholipid. The coagulant activity of factor VIII is increased 50-100 fold by the addition of thrombin, and this activity is stabilized in the presence of CaCl2. The activated product (tentatively identified as activated factor VIII) was readily inhibited by diisopropyl phosphorofluoridate or antithrombin III, suggesting that it is a serine enzyme. The exact role of this enzyme in the conversion of factor X to factor Xa, however, is not known. When factor X (bovine or human) is converted to factor Xa, an activation peptide is cleaved from the amino-terminal end of the heavy chain. This gives rise to a new amino-terminal sequence of Ile-Val-Gly-Gly-in the heavy chain. No change occurs in the light chain during the activation reaction. These data indicate that the basic mechanism involved in the conversion of human and bovine factor X to factor Xa appears to be essentially identical and probably involves the formation of a charge relay system characteristic of the pancreatic serine proteases.